Atletico Madrid will take on Barcelona this weekend as the best team in Spain, with eleven wins in a row. They face a Blaugrana side who have just five points from their last six games, but midfielder Pablo Barrios has suggested it is Los Rojiblancos who may adapt to the home side's approach.
Barrios confirmed to Cadena SER that he would not accept a draw at Montjuic, a sign of the confidence at Atletico at the moment. He noted that Barcelona's dip in form was similar to Atletico's this season, but in reverse. He also shied away from comparisons with captain Koke Resurreccion, who has tipped Barrios as a future captain at Atletico.
“No, no, no. I'm always told I'm the new Koke, but I'm definitely not. He has always been my idol, my role model on and off the pitch, and I hope to play many more games with him in midfield.”
“Busy [being tipped to be a captain]No. It's a pleasure. When a legend like Koke says that, I'm proud. It motivates me to keep working the way I do.”
It was noted several times during the week that Atletico Madrid were training in a 5-4-1 formation, with Conor Gallagher in the starting line-up. Barrios also hinted that Los Rojiblancos will try to adapt to Barcelona's weaknesses.
“No. I don't think so, we have always changed depending on the opponent. At the beginning of the year, when things weren't going well, we were not as bad as people told us. Now we are lucky that the results are our heading in that direction and we are very happy.”
Atletico have been using a 4-4-2 formation lately, with Julian Alvarez and Antoine Griezmann up front. Earlier in the season, Alvarez was also occasionally deployed wide. That said, Diego Simeone may be taking inspiration from Leganes' win over Barcelona last weekend, when they demolished the Blaugrana with reasonable results.
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